Siloxane polymers, organosiloxane polymers, and siloxane resins are used in the manufacture of, inter alia, light emitting devices, including, for example, those employing light emitting diodes (LEDs). These organosiloxane materials can be used, e.g., as binders or as encapsulating materials in the manufacture of such devices.
Improper, incomplete, insufficient, or irreproducible curing of organosiloxane polymers and resins in encapsulation applications, including but not limited to the preparation of phosphor binders in the manufacture of LED devices, can provide an unstable intermediate result. Unstable compounds in turn may result in products characterized by limited shelf life and/or limited service life. Accordingly, particularly in view of the widespread use of LEDs in the many forms and types of light emitting devices in the market, there is a need for efficient and reliable methods for the manufacture of LEDS, including therefore, a need for reproducible, standardized, and controlled methods for curing siloxane polymers, organosiloxane polymers, and siloxane resins.
In addition, some organosiloxane polymers can be cured using normal methods. However, curing processes and/or molecular rearrangements may continue long after devices are sold and put into use. This processes, commonly described as thermal and/or photothermal aging, may change the polymer from a somewhat flexible material that can absorb the thermal excursions of a LED device to a brittle material that will crack, delaminate, or cause stress-induced cracks and/or defects of other LED components.
JP2010090292 A describes providing a polyorganosiloxane hardened product with less degradation and free from uneven hardening. A gaseous catalyst and a polyorganosiloxane are contacted in a glass vessel with a lid to produce a polyorganosiloxane hardened product.